Mahatma Gandhi was a preeminent leader of the Indian independence movement in British-ruled India. Employing nonviolent civil disobedience, Gandhi led India to independence and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. The honorific Mahatma (Sanskrit: "high-souled," "venerable")โapplied to him first in 1914 in South Africaโis now used worldwide. He is also called Bapu (Gujarati: endearment for "father," "papa") in India.
Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869, in Porbandar, a coastal town in present-day Gujarat, India. He was the last of three children born to Karamchand Gandhi, the diwan (chief minister) of Porbandar, and his fourth wife, Putlibai. Gandhi's father was Hindu and his mother was Jain. Gandhi was deeply influenced by his mother, a deeply religious woman who fasted regularly and taught Gandhi about nonviolence and compassion.
Gandhi received his early education at home and later attended schools in Rajkot and Ahmedabad. He went on to study law in London and was admitted to the bar in 1891. After returning to India, Gandhi practiced law for a while but was not very successful. In 1893, he was offered a position as a legal representative for an Indian firm in South Africa. Gandhi accepted the offer and moved to South Africa, where he would spend the next 20 years of his life fighting for the rights of Indians living there.
Gandhi's experiences in South Africa were a turning point in his life. He was deeply troubled by the discrimination and injustice that Indians faced there and became involved in the struggle for civil rights. Gandhi developed the technique of nonviolent resistance, which he called satyagraha, or "holding onto truth." He believed that it was possible to fight injustice through nonviolence and that love and understanding were more powerful than hatred and violence.
Gandhi returned to India in 1915 and quickly became involved in the Indian independence movement. He became a leader of the Indian National Congress, the main political party in India, and began organizing protests and boycotts against British rule. Gandhi's campaigns of civil disobedience, or peaceful resistance, were instrumental in winning India's independence from Britain in 1947.
Gandhi was assassinated on January 30, 1948, by a Hindu nationalist who opposed his policies of nonviolence and reconciliation with Muslims. His death was a great loss to India and the world, but his legacy lives on. Gandhi's philosophy of nonviolence has inspired people around the world, including civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela. Today, Gandhi is remembered as one of the greatest leaders in history and is honored with a national holiday in India.
